Second Chance at Love
by Sesshomaru's Secret Admirer
Summary: He had perfected how to disconnect from his feelings. However, the consequences of that were deadly. What was the point of such realizations when she was no longer in his world. Dokuga Holiday Exchange 2019 participation.


Second Chance at Love

To Slayersgurl35, Merry Christmas! I hope you enjoy this piece that was based off of your beautiful picture of a hot onsen (hot spring) during the winter. May you have a wonderful and magical day.

##

White clouds of steam floated above the hot spring, dissolving the snowflakes that fell from the heavens. Instead, a pile of snow formed along the stone ridges that surrounded the natural spring waters. Ripples formed along the waters as customers soaked their skin in the heat.

Smoke rose from the chimney of a well-preserved Japanese house. White sliding doors reflected the light from within the house as it casted the shadows of customers to the onsen. Distant sounds of glasses clinking, laughter, low murmurs and the trickle of water echoed throughout the halls.

The onsen gardens were off limits for the customers. No eyes were allowed to lay upon the flowers that secretly bloomed and scattered the clearing. All but silence fell upon his surroundings. Silver strands of hair glowed in the reflection of the moonlight. Stripped of his armor, he stood in white silk and scattered patterns of Sakura. No longer did he need to fight, his sword along his waist was absent. Golden eyes casted far into the distance.

Nothing had changed.

His eyes remained fixated on the small deteriorating hut before him. 500 years ago in the past, it was the hut that belonged to his ward and her.

A blanket of white snow slowly covered the garden grounds. It was times like these, he was reminded of her.

##

_Footprints imprinted in the snow trailed behind him. Located on his Western land, past the deep forest and beyond the mountains, he arrived at the village. His direction never strayed from the small hut that appeared before him._

"_Sesshomaru-sama!" The familiar sound of his ward greeted him. He noticed a change in the atmosphere. His ward, aware of this, explained, "Sango and Miroku built a hut right over there," as she pointed to a hut a few meters away which had not been there during his last visit. "They just birthed their fifth child, so they said it was too cramped to live in one small hut."_

_Rin explained why she no longer lived in the same hut as the Taijiya and Monk that Sesshomaru-sama had instructed her to do. A bright smile revealed all her baby teeth have been replaced with adult one. She said excitedly, "Kagome onee-chan lives with me now!"_

_Stoic eyes stared down at his ward, hiding the confusion._

_The soft sound of snow crunching beneath her feet caught his ear. Locks of ebony curls flowed down her miko garb as she lowered herself into a bow. "Sesshomaru-sama," she addressed in respect._

_Her gaze lifted towards him as crystal blue eyes locked into his. The calm steady ocean behind her eyes alone told him stories of her maturity and wisdom. As Rin's guardian, she reported, "Inuyasha and I are no longer mates. I hope you will allow me to stay with Rin and take care of her."_

"_Please, Sesshomaru-sama? I really really love Kagome onee-chan!" Rin added her plea._

_The Miko was not a threat to his ward, he knew. "Do as you wish."_

_Walking past the Miko, from the corner of his eyes, he caught a soft smile grace her lips._

"_Thank you, Sesshomaru-sama," she whispered gently._

_##_

At that time he didn't know of it, but the memory of her smile never faded.

His visits to see his ward was sparse. Any conversations with the Miko were minimal. Their interactions short.

So then, when was it?

At what point did his thoughts always fall towards her?

##

_An uncontrollable shiver coursed through his body. He could feel the poison disperse through his blood stream. The snake clan's threat towards the Western land was no longer an issue. He wiped out those who rebelled against him. He knew the snake clan would be difficult to bring down. They used their poison during the battle. Even though he was immune to poison, he knew it would take at least a day before he was fully recovered._

_Drained of strength, he realized where he was. A light turned on within the hut as smoke rose from the chimney. A warmth beckoned him to enter._

"_Sesshomaru-sama?" Her soft voice said with a hint of shock. She had noticed his presence. _

_With the poison fully taken effect, he could no longer control his limbs. Gravity pulled him towards the snow covered ground. Instead of the hard ground, he felt the Miko grasp him and help him into the hut._

_Why did he come here?_

_When injured it was wise for the Daiyoukai to go into hiding for protection. No one could be trusted when most vulnerable. _

_Lying down on a futon, the Miko placed a hand over his forehead. The Miko mumbled to herself, "He was poisoned."_

_Unable to speak or move, he lay in numbness._

_He shouldn't have come. He needed to reach his hideout while the poison wore off. Commanding his body to move, he tried to leave. The Miko noticing his muscles tense, she gently placed a hand on his arm._

"_Please, you can stay here to recover." The tenderness in her voice caused him to feel something more then just numbness._

_Out of desperation she continued, "You will be safe here. I'll protect you."_

_He would have scoffed if he could. He did not need protection. Though he could not answer the question as to why he came here in the first place._

"_This is your home," she said as she wiped a trail of sweat from the side of his face._

_The sensation her words caused within him made him forget the reason he needed to leave._

_##_

His chest twisted at the memory. Having never relied on anyone before, the Miko had engraved within him a new sensation. What was once a warm memory was now evoking within him…a longing.

No, he would never regain those feelings again.

No other could evoke within him such feelings.

It had to be only her.

Yet, she was…

##

_His footsteps halted as he stood before the hut. Her scent had vanished. The clearing felt amiss. Her presence no longer dwelled upon the lands._

_His ward immediately ran towards him once she recognized who stood still in front of her hut. Tears in her eyes, she told him of how the Miko had to leave and return home. What was home to her? Was it back to the half-breed? An annoying tug pulled against his chest._

_His ward sobbed out that the Miko could only explain that she had to leave and would never be able to return._

_Stab._

_Ignored._

_He went on, ignoring his ward's tears, ignoring the odd sensation._

_##_

Clawed hands dusted off the snow that had piled onto the lilies. Breaking off a few lilies from the ground, he replaced the withered flowers with a fresh bouquet. Carved into the stone wrote his ward's name.

##

_The hut grew dim as a single candle reflected light upon her pale wrinkled skin. Short of breath, she gasped for whatever air she could intake. Blurred eyes that could no longer see as clearly struggled to see past her descendants that stood by her side and stared at the one who had taken care of her since young. A sad smile appeared on her face for she knew she was the last connection he had to a living being now that Kagome onee-chan was gone._

"_Sesshomaru-sama, I hope that this village I've built overtime remains as a place people can meet and laugh….just as it was with Kagome onee-chan." Rin caught to flicker of emotion behind his eyes at the sound of her name. "Even when I'm gone, I want there to always be laughter here."_

_##_

Another echo of laughter rung throughout the onsen causing those who listen to put a smile on their face.

A dullness entered his eyes. It was not her laughter.

A breeze blew from the direction of his private hot spring, a few feet away from the hut. The blow of steam, beckoning him to come soak in its warm waters. The only warmth he was made to feel. A misty fog rose to the sky as clear blue water rippled against the rocks along the edges.

Perhaps a hint of tiredness slipped past his stoic expression.

White silk slowly slipped down his torso revealing the shape of muscle formed along his arms and chest. Bare, he slipped into the steaming waters. Embraced by the warmth of the water, his eyes slowly closed.

##

_In a field of flowers not too far from the hut, fireflies encircled the clearing at sunset. As time passed by, he found himself against the same oak tree as she sat a distance away. Some days in silence they sat. Some days he would listen to her soft voice._

"_Humans, with their short life span, at some point are tired of living. Perhaps it is because we are afraid to outlive others and watch everyone leave us behind. Perhaps it is because life no longer holds any meaning for them to live," she spoke her thoughts out loud. Most times he just listened to her ramble. However, her eyes turned towards him. "What of youkai? Youkai live longer than humans. Wouldn't youkai tire of living at one point?"_

_It was the first time she directed a question towards him. He remained silent. Perhaps unable to give her a response._

_A sad smile rested on her lips as she whispered, "I hope you never experience it. The pain of others leaving you nor the tiredness of living."_

_##_

A hopeful chant she casted over him; protecting him.

His chest felt warmth.

Crack.

The sound of a branch snap caught him off guard. His eyes snapped open to search for the intruder. No one was allowed in the garden. Customers were made aware of this.

The fog of the steam blurred his senses.

His body tense, on high alert.

Already nightfall, the moon was the only source of light.

Past the thick branches of the forest, he noticed a figure approaching him.

Golden eyes narrowed.

The figure paused and stared at the inuyoukai bathed under the moonlight.

"Sesshomaru….sama?" Her voice sounded out softly in disbelief.

Impossible.

His chest lurched at the familiar sound of her voice.

She slowly moved closer to reveal herself.

The one who haunted him.

As if a spell casted over him, he stood up as droplets of water cascaded down his figure. In a trance, he inched towards where she stood in front of the spring. A slow wave of water parted across his hips as he neared her. Droplets of water dripped down from wet silver strands of hair. His gaze locked with her blue eyes. Finally reaching the foot of the spring, the Miko stood before him as she appeared 500 years ago.

Enchanted.

Ever so cautiously, she reached out her hand and brushed a finger across the markings on his cheek.

Unable to mask the overwhelming wave of emotions her touch had caused, he pulled her into the water towards him. Splashes of water exploded the surrounding as they stood there in a tight embrace.

##

_He stood still, his eyes locked on the hut. Why did he end up here? His ward had passed on several years ago. He had no more business in this village anymore. Yet, unconsciously… he ended up here._

_Was it out of habit?_

_Perhaps it was to carry out his ward's dying wish._

_Descendants of his ward passed by him as they bowed in respect, knowing whom he was. The village leader, Rin's son, neared him. He reported everyone who came by the village and of any updates regarding the village. It had become a ritual that occurred every time he visited the village. Though he had never instructed for this ritual to happen, he did not stop it._

_Why?_

"_A wandering Miko visited the village and is staying with us for a couple of weeks…" The village leader trailed off as he noticed the Inuyoukai tense._

_His nose slightly raised to take in the surrounding scents._

_No, there were no traces of her_ _presence._

_Realizing his actions, he froze._

_His ward had died from old age. There was no way the Miko was still alive to return to the village._

_As if that realization unlocked the emotions he supressed, a gut-wrenching wave tore at him. The Miko was dead. She would never return to the village. Had he been waiting for her all this time?_

_He denied it, supressed it, ignored it all this time._

_Defeat._

_What was the point in admitting that he loved her when she would never be in his reach?_

_##_

"You're alive," she whispered with a brokenness.

Words could not escape the tight grasp around his throat. It took him decades later to understand the feelings she stirred within him. By that point, he thought her to be dead. Was the Kamis giving him another chance? Or was this all a dream.

Within a tight embrace, her scent consumed his senses. The soft breeze of her breath brushed against his cheek. Her forehead rested against his as she closed her eyes in relief. Her fingers remained against his face as if needing proof of his existence.

All the meanwhile, the emotions that she instilled within him exploded within. Her closeness broke all restraint.

Unable to control the desires he buried, he kissed her. Running his tongue over her lips, he hungrily tasted her.

A gasp escaped her lips, but she did not push him away.

Clawed hands ran down her arm, slipping off the now soaked jacket she wore. The steam of the onsen drowned her senses as she felt heat every inch of her body. His hands soon slipped under her sweater as a moaned escaped from between their locked lips. Snapping off the fabric that covered her breasts, his hand cupped them. Releasing his lips from her's, he nipped the side of her neck and left a trail of kiss marks. Unable to control the sounds escaping from her lips, she covered her mouth with a hand. His lips reached one side of her breast and sucked on her exposed nipple. A pool a heat intensified as it trailed down to her core. She panted, short of breath from the pleasure.

Her fingers brushed against his bare chest. His embrace brought her closer to him. Both their bare bodies felt the warmth of the others.

"Ah," her voice escaped past her hand as she felt his heat slide in between her legs. Brushing along the top of her underwear, she felt the fabric slowly sliding off with his hands. He slowly moved his shaft against her exposed opening. The rubbing sensation drove her mad. Impatience and lust laced in her voice as she whispered, "Sesshomaru."

Hearing her desires, he could not resist any longer. His length slowly entered her, giving her time to adjust to his size. A gasp of pleasure and pain echoed in the clearing. His length fully inside her, his lips found her's and held her.

This couldn't be a dream.

She was finally his.

He caught on to her impatience as she slowly moved her hips towards him. A low growl vibrated in his chest. Pulling out, he thrust deeper into her causing the both of them to tremble with pleasure. Her legs wrapped around him as he thrusted deeper and deeper each time. Waves of water surrounded them as droplets that trailed down their body scattered the hot spring.

Golden eyes drank in the beauty before him. As if she was glistening in the moonlight, droplets of sweat and water shined across her bare body. Each thrust caused an expression of pure pleasure on her face. She bit down on her lush lips to prevent erotic sounds from leaving her. Her cheeks flushed with red either from the slight chill of the winter night or from the consumed heat of the moment.

Her walls clenched tighter with each thrust. Thrusting faster he felt a wave of heat paralyze him. Feeling her walls close around him, she let out a moan of ecstasy. She felt a pool of warmth enter into her as he thrusted deep into her one more time.

In each other's embrace, the sound of their pants remained. The ripples of the hot spring water calmed. Leaning into his chest, she rested her head against his shoulder. He nuzzled his nose into her locks of hair. Closing his eyes shut, he whispered the words he wanted to tell her centuries ago.

'I love you.'

….and prayed it had not all been but a dream.


End file.
